Case structure

ABSTRACT

A case structure applied to contain a portable electronic device comprises a back cover, a frame, a transparent film and a protective layer. The frame is detachably connected to the back cover. The transparent film is disposed between the back cover and the frame and has a through hole. The protective layer covers the through hole and is disposed between the back cover and the transparent film.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This Non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) on Patent Application No(s). 102138985 filed in Taiwan, Republic of China on Oct. 29, 2013, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

The invention relates to a case structure and, in particular, to a case structure which can contain a portable electronic device.

2. Related Art

With the progress of technologies, electronic components and semiconductor are getting more miniaturized. For bringing out the optimum use effectiveness, various portable electronic devices are invented and made, such as smart phones and tablet computers, enhancing the convenience in human life and transaction.

Besides, with the increasing dependence of the user on the smart phones and tablet computers, such portable electronic devices are developed into a highly personal product with privacy security. Once the portable electronic device is lost, the data stored therein may be used by the interested person to result in the unnecessary loss. Hence, such products need to be configured with the functions of identity authentication and access management, which encompass the password protection and even fingerprint recognition that gradually becomes the mainstream trend. For the fingerprint recognition, a fingerprint recognition portion can be disposed on a portable electronic device for example, and the user can use a finger to contact the fingerprint recognition portion so that the portable electronic device can catch and process the fingerprint data of the user.

Furthermore, since the electronic components used in the smart phones and tablet computers are more precise and valuable, most users will equip their portable electronic device with a case structure on the outside to protect the portable electronic device, and therefore the portable electronic device can achieve the drop-proof, collision-proof, water-proof, dust-proof, or chemical-proof effect or other effects preventing the external damage. However, when the portable electronic device is configured with the above-mentioned fingerprint recognition function, the case structure will deteriorate or even totally hinder the fingerprint recognition function, so that the case structure can't provide the practicability and security at the same time. Therefore, it is an important subject to provide a case structure that can be used to cover the portable electronic device and provide better applicability for the portable electronic device.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing subject, an objective of the invention is to provide a case structure that can be used to cover the portable electronic device and provide better applicability for the portable electronic device.

To achieve the above objective, a case structure of this invention is applied to contain a portable electronic device and comprises a back cover, a frame, a transparent film and a protective layer. The frame is detachably connected to the back cover. The transparent film is disposed between the back cover and the frame and has a through hole. The protective layer covers the through hole and is disposed between the back cover and the transparent film.

In one embodiment, the protective layer is disposed to at least a part of the transparent film.

In one embodiment, the thickness of the protective layer is between 0.02 mm and 0.08 mm.

In one embodiment, the transparent film and the protective layer are made by the same material.

In one embodiment, the transparent film and the protective layer are made by different material.

In one embodiment, the materials of the transparent film and protective layer include polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) or their any combination.

In one embodiment, the back cover, the frame and the transparent film collectively define a containing space for containing the portable electronic device.

In one embodiment, the portable electronic device includes a fingerprint recognition portion and the protective layer is disposed corresponding to the fingerprint recognition portion.

In one embodiment, the case structure further comprises a functional layer disposed on the same side as the transparent film covered by the protective layer. The functional layer includes an anti-scratch layer or anti-fingerprint layer.

In one embodiment, the case structure further comprises a printed layer disposed around the through hole. The printed layer is disposed between the transparent film and the protective layer, or to the transparent film, or to the protective layer.

As mentioned above, in the case structure of the invention, the protective layer is disposed to the through hole of the transparent film to form a double-layer structure. When the case structure contains a portable electronic device, the user can operate a part of the portable electronic device through the double-layer structure so that the applicability of the case structure can be enhanced.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description and accompanying drawings, which are given for illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic appearance diagram of a case structure of an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic exploded diagram of the case structure of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional diagram taken along the line A-A in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional diagram of a case structure of an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic sectional diagram of a case structure of an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 6A is a schematic exploded diagram of a part of a case structure of an embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 6B is a schematic sectional diagram of a part of the case structure in FIG. 6A.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein the same references relate to the same elements.

To be noted, the case structure provided by this invention is given as an example by being used to cover a portable electronic device. For example, the embodiments of this invention illustrate the details of the case structure by describing the connection or coupling of the elements, and the product of Apple iPhone5s® is used to assist the illustration of this invention, but this is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. Besides, the so-called connection includes the direct connection between the elements and the indirect connection between the elements (for example, another medium or element is between the two elements). When the elements are illustrated as the direct connection, it means there is no other medium or element existing therebetween. In some embodiments, partial known elements may be omitted to make the concept of this invention more clear.

Some relative terms, such as “down” or “bottom” and “up” or “top”, are used to describe the relative relation of the elements in the figure. Those skilled in the art can unambiguously comprehend that the above-mentioned relative terms are used to describe the positions of the portable electronic device covered by the case structure. For example, when the case structure covering the portable electronic device is turned or rotated, the element originally described as disposed on the bottom side of another element will be turned to the top side of the another element. That is, the bottom side is relatively determined by the position of the case structure and brings out the derivative top side.

FIG. 1 is a schematic appearance diagram of a case structure of an embodiment of the invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic exploded diagram of the case structure of FIG. 1. Since the case structure C of FIG. 1 is in the assembled state, some elements of the case structure C will not be marked in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in this embodiment, the case structure C is used to contain a portable electronic device (not shown). The case structure C is substantially a water-proof structure, for example conforming to the water-proof level of IP68 defined by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA). The portable electronic device that can be contained by the case structure C is, for example but not limited to, a cell phone, a smart phone, an MP3 player, a portable computer, a tablet computer, a PDA or the like.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in this embodiment, the case structure C includes a back cover 1, a frame 2, a transparent film 3 and a protective layer 4. The frame 2 is detachably connected to the back cover 1. The transparent film 3 is disposed between the back cover 1 and the frame 2 and connected with the frame 2. In this embodiment, the back cover 1, the frame 2 and the transparent film 3 collectively define a containing space 5, which is similar to a structure with a rectangular space to contain the portable electronic device such as Apple iPhone5s®. To be noted, the dimensions of the containing space 5 is not limited and can be determined according to the applied portable electronic device.

The material of the back cover 1 and frame 2 is, for example but not limited to, polypropylene (PP), polycarbonate (PC), thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) or the like. The material of a part of the case structure C includes metal, alloy, stainless steel, nylon, rigid plastic, iron, aluminum, lead and/or the like, or their any combination, but this is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense.

In this embodiment, for providing the protection for the portable electronic device covered by the case structure C and maintaining the applicability of the portable electronic device in the covered state, the back cover 1 and the frame 2 include a plurality of engaging structures and elements, and the elements are disposed corresponding to the functional structures of the portable electronic device. The above-mentioned structure will be illustrated below. To be noted, the elements of the back cover 1 and frame 2 are just for the illustrative purpose but not for limiting the scope of the invention.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the back cover 1 includes a trench portion 11, which is disposed around at least a part of the containing space 5. In this embodiment, the frame 2 includes a protrusion 21 corresponding to the trench portion 11. When the case structure C is in the assembled state, the protrusion 21 of the frame 2 can be partially or totally disposed in the trench portion 11. However, this invention is not limited thereto. For example, those skilled in the art can unambiguously comprehend that the trench portion 11 may be disposed on the frame 2. In such case, the protrusion 21 can be correspondingly disposed on the back cover 1 for the connection between the frame 2 and the back cover 1.

Besides, the back cover 1 of this embodiment includes two fasteners 12 and the frame 2 includes two fastening portions 22. That is, the user can assemble and disassemble the frame 2 and the back cover 1 by the correspondingly disposed fastening portions 22 and fasteners 12. In this embodiment, each of the fasteners 12 includes a fastening axis 121, and the fastener 12 is pivotally connected to the back cover 1 through the fastening axis 121. To be noted, the quantity and disposition of the fastener and fastening portion are not for the limiting purpose, but the concept of this embodiment is focused on the fastener and fastening portion which can lock together. Favorably, the concept of this invention encompasses other technical means that can tightly connect or fix the back cover and the frame.

The connection strength of the case structure C can be enhanced by the multiple fixing methods. Therefore, the case structure C can tightly cover the portable electronic device, and the elements of the case structure C can be prevented from falling off.

More favorably, in practice, an oil seal or silicone object can be further disposed between the trench portion 11 and the protrusion 21 in order to reduce the wear problem of the connection between the back cover 1 and the frame 2 and further enhance water-proof effect of the case structure C. However, this invention is not limited thereto.

As shown in FIG. 2, the back cover 1 further includes a plurality of pressing portions 13. The material of the pressing portion 13 can be soft plastic, such as polycarbonate. However, this invention is not limited thereto, and other materials such as polypropylene, soft rubber or the like can be applied. Physically, when the case structure C covers a portable electronic device, the pressing portions 13 can be pressed and operated, and besides, they correspond to the functional mechanisms of the portable electronic device, such as the buttons, switches, sliding elements, balls or any other control elements.

Through the above-mentioned relative positions of the elements, when the case structure C covers the portable electronic device, the user can directly operate the pressing portions 13 on the case structure C to control partial physical buttons of the portable electronic device.

As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, the back cover 1 further includes a plurality of through holes 14, which are disposed corresponding to the earphone jack and charge jack for example. When the portable electronic device is contained by the case structure C, the user can use the corresponding functions of the portable electronic device through the through holes 14 without the need to disassemble the case structure C.

As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, the back cover 1 further includes a lens protection structure 15. Through the disposition of the lens protection structure 15, the camera lens and flash lens of the portable electronic device can be protected. However, the lens protection structure 15 is a dispensable element in this invention.

As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, the transparent film 3 at least partially adheres to the frame 2 or is at least partially disposed to the frame 2, so that the display screen of the portable electronic device can be clearly seen even though the portable electronic device contained in the case structure C is isolated from the outside. In this embodiment, the material of the transparent film 3 includes thermoforming plastics, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), plastic strip or their any combination, or the like.

The transparent film 3 is a clear/transparent or substantially clear/transparent water-proof film to assist the user to view at least a part of the screen of the portable electronic device. Besides, the transparent film 3 can make the user operate the portable electronic device covered by the case structure C. For example, when some potable electronic devices including the capacitive-type touch sensors of the touch screen are applied, the user can take some operations such as touch or move on the touch screen to control the portable electronic device. Accordingly, the transparent film 3 is a sensible-type or transparent-type touch film to assist the user to touch control the portable electronic device. That is, the user can use and operate the portable electronic device without taking it out of the case structure C. Furthermore, the transparent film 3 also facilitates the operation of the portable electronic device in the water and even the operation that is implemented when the portable electronic device must be sealed in the case structure C. Of course, those skilled in the art can comprehend that the transparent film 3 can be embodied as another type also for the operation of the portable electronic device. For example, the transparent film 3 can be a resistive-type sensing film, but this invention is not limited thereto.

In this embodiment, the transparent film 3 can be an anti-reflection film, anti-glare film, anti-fingerprint film or monitor filtering film, etc. For example, the transparent film 3 can filter out the light reflected by the glossy glass surface of the touch screen and the radiation emitted by the portable electronic device. Besides, the transparent film 3 also can narrow the viewing angle of the portable electronic device to protect the user's privacy. In addition, the transparent film 3 can lessen the accumulation of the electrostatic charge. In practice, the transparent film 3 can be a polarized-type, colorized-type, tinted-type, etc., according to the application.

Since the portable electronic device includes a plurality of buttons or adjusting keys, the transparent film can include the protrusions or depressions corresponding to the buttons or adjusting keys to assist the user to conveniently operate the buttons and adjusting keys. Therefore in this embodiment, the case structure C is favorably applied to the portable electronic device including a fingerprint recognition portion. Accordingly, the transparent film 3 has a circular through hole 31 at the bottom, the protective layer 4 of the case structure C covers the through hole 31 and is disposed between the back cover 1 and the transparent film 3, and the protective layer 4 is disposed to at least a part of the transparent film 3 and corresponding to the fingerprint recognition portion to facilitate the operation of the fingerprint recognition portion. Certainly, those skilled in the art can comprehend that the through hole 31 can be disposed at any position of the transparent film 3. Besides, the transparent film 3 can include any quantity of the above-mentioned structure, button or film to assist the user to conveniently operate the portable electronic device.

The detailed structures of the transparent film 3 and protective layer 4 of this embodiment are further illustrated. FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional diagram taken along the line A-A in FIG. 1. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, in this embodiment, the thickness T2 of the protective layer 4 is less than the thickness T1 of the transparent film 3 and is between 0.02 mm and 0.08 mm for example. Herein, the so-called thickness indicates the thickness of the transparent film 3 or protective layer 4 along the arrangement direction of the back cover 1 and frame 2. To be noted, the thickness of the protective layer 4 can be adjusted according to the thickness of the applied transparent film 3 and can be located in a sub-range of the above-mentioned range.

Through the above-mentioned design, the user can press the protective layer 4 by passing through the through hole 31 of the transparent film 3 to put the finger on the fingerprint recognition portion of the portable electronic device for executing the unlocking operation, authentication or other services provided by the portable electronic device. Since the practical application about the fingerprint recognition portion of the portable electronic device can be comprehended by those skilled in the art, the related illustration is omitted here for conciseness.

In this embodiment, the transparent film 3 and the protective layer 4 are made by the same material so as to bring about the convenience for the process. That is, the material of the protective layer 4 also can include thermoforming plastics, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), plastic strip or their any combination, or the like. Besides, the protective layer 4 is basically provided by not hindering the user's visual operation to the portable electronic device, and is thus a level and transparent film like the transparent film 3.

However, the above mention is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. In other embodiments, the transparent film and the protective layer both can be made by other materials so as to show more flexibility in the material selection.

Other embodiments will be illustrated below. To be noted, since the case structures of the following embodiments have similar elements and appearance to the case structure of the above embodiments, FIG. 1 also can be used for reference. The following is just to use the sectional diagram taken along the line A-A in FIG. 1 to illustrate a part of the structure of the embodiments.

In one embodiment, the protective layer also can include some structures corresponding to the buttons or adjusting keys of the portable electronic device. Refer to FIG. 4, which is a schematic sectional diagram of a case structure of an embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the protective layer 4 a of the case structure C1 includes a depression 41 a corresponding to the through hole 31 a of the transparent film 3 a. In detail, the depression 41 a has two sidewalls 42 a, and the sidewalls 42 a and the inner surface of the through hole 31 a form a continuous surface. Favorably, the continuous surface is a level surface. In this embodiment, the bottom 411 a of the depression 41 a is a level and smooth surface. However, this invention is not limited thereto, and in other embodiments the depression may include other surface structures with functionality, as illustrated later.

Since the beautiful look is also a requirement for the portable electronic device, most functional buttons, especially the button on the side of the screen, are arranged levelly with the outer surface of the portable electronic device or even depressed. Therefore, in order to achieve the applicability and operability of the case structure C1, the depression 41 a of the protective layer 4 a can be disposed corresponding to the depressed fingerprint recognition portion. Thereby, the user can more easily press the protective layer 4 a slightly by pressing the through hole 31 of the transparent film 3 to put the finger on the fingerprint recognition portion of the potable electronic device while unnecessarily applying too much pressure on the protective layer 4 a to prevent the damage of the protective layer 4 a.

In one embodiment, the case structure can include a functional layer to enhance its applicability. Refer to FIG. 5, which is a schematic sectional diagram of a case structure of an embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the functional layer 6 is disposed on the same side as the transparent film 3 covered by the protective layer 4. The functional layer 6 can include an anti-scratch layer or anti-fingerprint layer substantially. That is, through the disposition of the functional layer 6, the case structure C2 will not be scratched and can maintain the clean surface after being pressed. More importantly, when the portable electronic device applied with the case structure C2 has a fingerprint recognition function, the disposition of the functional layer 6 can prevent the remaining fingerprint of the user, and therefore it is impossible for the interested person to retain or transfer the fingerprint on the protective layer 4 by a special method for improper purpose. More favorably, through the disposition of the functional layer 6, the protective layer 4 can maintain its good display quality and operational sensitivity after the multi-time contact and rub done by the user.

Generally, the surface of the functional layer 6 mostly has good stain resistance, fingerprint stain resistance, smooth tactility, water resistance, oil resistance and transparence. Besides, the functional layer 6 needs to have high adhesion to the outer surface of the covered device to elongate its lifecycle. To be noted, the material of the functional layer 6 is not limited in this invention and can be varied to achieve the above-mentioned functions. The functional layer 6 can be a film structure additionally disposed or formed by a coating method for example. As to the function of preventing the remaining fingerprint, the material of the functional layer 6 can include fluorocarbon silicon hydrocarbons, perfluorocarbon silicon hydrocarbons, fluorocarbon silane hydrocarbons, per-fluorinated silane hydrocarbons, perfluorinated silane hydrocarbon ethers, perfluorinated silane hydrocarbon ethers containing chlorine radicals, or their any combination or the like. However, this invention is not limited thereto.

In one embodiment, the case structure can include a printed layer. FIG. 6A is a schematic exploded diagram of a part of a case structure of an embodiment of the invention, and FIG. 6B is a schematic sectional diagram of a part of the case structure in FIG. 6A. As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the case structure C3 of this embodiment includes similar elements and appearance to the case structure C of the above embodiment except including a printed layer 7. The printed layer 7 is disposed around the through hole 31 and between the transparent film 3 and the protective layer 4. The printed layer 7 can be printed or coated with a figure 71, which is, for example but not limited to, an indicative text, warning text or decorative pattern. The figure 71 of this embodiment is “FINGERPRINT READER” disposed annularly on the printed layer 7. Thereby, the user can know the operation position or method, or the user's name or information can be printed, or the beautiful appearance can be provided.

However, the position of the printer layer 7 is not limited in this invention. In other embodiments, the printed layer may be disposed on the side of the transparent film away from the protective layer or on the side of the protective layer away from the transparent film, according to the process convenience or requirement.

Summarily, in the case structure of the invention, the protective layer is disposed to the through hole of the transparent film to form a double-layer structure. When the case structure contains a portable electronic device, the user can operate a part of the portable electronic device through the double-layer structure so that the applicability of the case structure can be enhanced.

Although the invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiments, as well as alternative embodiments, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art. It is, therefore, contemplated that the appended claims will cover all modifications that fall within the true scope of the invention. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A case structure applied to contain a portable electronic device, comprising: a back cover; a frame detachably connected to the back cover; a transparent film disposed between the back cover and the frame and having a through hole; and a protective layer covering the through hole and disposed between the back cover and the transparent film.
 2. The case structure as recited in claim 1, wherein the protective layer is disposed to at least a part of the transparent film.
 3. The case structure as recited in claim 1, wherein the thickness of the protective layer is between 0.02 mm and 0.08 mm.
 4. The case structure as recited in claim 1, wherein the transparent film and the protective layer are made by the same material.
 5. The case structure as recited in claim 4, wherein the material of the transparent film and protective layer includes polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) or their any combination.
 6. The case structure as recited in claim 1, wherein the transparent film and the protective layer are made by different material.
 7. The case structure as recited in claim 6, wherein the materials of the transparent film and protective layer include polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) or their any combination.
 8. The case structure as recited in claim 1, wherein the back cover, the frame and the transparent film collectively define a containing space for containing the portable electronic device.
 9. The case structure as recited in claim 7, wherein the portable electronic device includes a fingerprint recognition portion and the protective layer is disposed corresponding to the fingerprint recognition portion.
 10. The case structure as recited in claim 1, further comprising: a functional layer disposed on the same side as the transparent film covered by the protective layer.
 11. The case structure as recited in claim 10, wherein the functional layer includes an anti-scratch layer or anti-fingerprint layer.
 12. The case structure as recited in claim 10, wherein the material of the functional layer includes fluorocarbon silicon hydrocarbons, perfluorocarbon silicon hydrocarbons, fluorocarbon silane hydrocarbons, per-fluorinated silane hydrocarbons, perfluorinated silane hydrocarbon ethers, perfluorinated silane hydrocarbon ethers containing chlorine radicals, or their any combination.
 13. The case structure as recited in claim 1, further comprising: a printed layer disposed around the through hole and between the transparent film and the protective layer.
 14. The case structure as recited in claim 1, further comprising: a printed layer disposed around the through hole and to the transparent film.
 15. The case structure as recited in claim 1, further comprising: a printed layer disposed around the through hole and to the protective layer. 